German tennis duo aims to serve up 80-hour match
July 11, 2015
Two enthusiastic tennis players were exhausted but excited on Saturday as they crossed the half-way mark in their attempt to set a world record for the longest continuous game of tennis.
Niklas Jahn, 21, and Dennis Groissl, 30, have been playing almost nonstop since Thursday morning, and despite the fact that they could break the current world record on Saturday, they are determined to play 80 hours straight and finish up on Sunday evening.
They reasoned that although the current Guinness world record is held by two Americans at 61 hours, they "wanted to increase it to 80, because in 2013 two challengers played 77 hours," as Jahn told NDR news, explaining that the 2013 players were disqualified by Guinness because they did not adhere to all of the rules about breaks.
According to the DPA news agency, Jahn and Groissl, playing at the tennis courts in Bargteheide in the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein, are only allowed five minutes of rest each hour. Instead of sleeping they are keeping themselves energized with coffee, eggs, noodles, yogurt drinks and energy bars.
'We're keen to do something crazy'
They were allowed their first longer break of one hour on Saturday morning, thought it was unclear how many hours the pair would have to play for an additional longer break. Groissl's sister Bianca told DPA that the main purpose of the pause was to receive treatment from physical therapists, but she added that Jahn fell asleep almost immediately.
"Some people say we're insane, but we're keen to do something crazy," Groissl said of their attempt before they began.
The feet will be even morning amazing considering what Jahn, a medical student, plans to do immediately afterwards. DPA reported that he has an important exam for his degree on Tuesday.
"Thank God I only have to click on the answers," he told the news agency. "By then, I won't be able to hold a pen."
Hamburg soccer players go for their own record
Jahn and Groissl were not the only Germans vying to get their names in Guinness's book over the weekend. The "Hamburger Morgenpost" newspaper reported on Friday a group of men in Hamburg were attempting to play a game of soccer for 76 hours straight.
The "Morgenpost" said the small local team FC Hamburger Berg, which has already brought itself attention by having 60 refugees join the club, will set tickets to their recording-breaking game in order to support the increasing number of refugees coming to Germany ever year.
The soccer players will luckily not be as sore as Jahn and Groissl, however, as they are allowed an indefinite amount of substitutions.